LOS ALAMITOS, CA—APRIL 18, 2014—According to an article by Steve Andersen published yesterday on Daily Racing Form's website, officials with Los Alamitos Race Course are in talks with Barretts Sales and Racing at the Los Angeles County Fair to relocate the 13-day Fairplex meeting to the Orange County track in September.

Racing has been held at the Los Angeles County Fair since September 1933, shortly after the legalization of parimutuel racing in California. If the dates are transferred it would likely mark an end to live racing at the Los Angles County Fair.

Discussions between the two tracks and other industry representatives were held Thursday and expected to continue today (Friday). The proposal would be subject to the approval of the California Horse Racing Board.

Fairplex Park holds racing dates from Sept. 5-21 this year.

It was not immediately known what the meeting at Los Alamitos in September would be called, or whether a group other than Los Alamitos management would direct the operation. Los Alamitos conducted the Orange County Fair from 1977 to 1991. The track hosts year-round racing for Quarter Horses and lower-level Thoroughbreds.

Earlier this year, Los Alamitos completed a renovation of its main track to expand the racing surface from five-eighths of a mile to a mile to accommodate two upcoming meetings for Thoroughbreds – a two-week meeting in July and a three-week meeting in December.

The dates were previously held by Hollywood Park in Inglewood, Calif., which closed last December. Other dates previously held by Hollywood Park were awarded to Del Mar and Santa Anita.

The addition of the Los Angeles County Fair dates would give Los Alamitos eight weeks of Thoroughbred racing this year. Some industry officials expect the addition of afternoon Thoroughbred racing at Los Alamitos to give racing business a boost in Southern California. Los Alamitos is in Cypress, Calif., on the northern end of affluent Orange County.

Los Alamitos has capacity for 500 Thoroughbreds, which is being expanded to 700 with the construction of new stalls. Track officials have said that temporary stalls could be in place during a live racing meeting to expand capacity for Thoroughbreds to 900. The track has also started several capital improvement projects to its grandstand.